Big hitters at The Big Easy
Big hitters now have a new place to play. The Big Easy, a swish restaurant, bar and private club facility has opened in La Gratitude, one of Stellenbosch’s most historic homes. In addition to providing fabulous (and cellar-door priced) founder’s wines, the moola (and there’s bucket loads of it) behind this operation comes in the form of partners Ernie Els, Jean Engelbrecht (Rust en Vrede), Johann Rupert (L’Ormarins etc. etc.), Paul Harris (Audacia, Ellerman House, FNB etc. etc. and Giuseppe Ciucci whose name doesn’t ring bells but obviously keeps fine company.
Marc Piotrowski created the interiors which are interesting and diverse and move from more casual to formal spaces elegantly. I liked the smaller, private dining rooms and can see that golfers will enjoy a room created entirely with them in mind.
Ronan O’Dwyer is the chef of the moment (there was a French chef there previously...) and the menu is reasonably priced with starters going for R60, salads, R61 and main courses at around the R100 mark. Desserts, with the exception of cheese, are R40 each.
I’m told O’Dwyer was at The Round House previously where I was very impressed by the food. Here though, I found it only okay. It didn’t live up to my expectations or, to paraphrase Oscar Wilde, the china. When I was served soft shell crab with avo at The Round House it was one of the most delicious things I’d ever eaten. Here (served with avo and a prawn rissole) it was dull at best. The Caesar salad while loaded with pancetta, parmesan and croutons missed the mark. Instead of incorporating the anchovies into the dressing, the fillets were like hits of rasping saltiness which, when combined with the pancetta, was overwhelming.
The Big Easy lamb burger looked good (served Med-style with roasted peppers, hummus, rocket and tzazki) and spicy potato wedges and my colleague said she enjoyed it. Cob was the line fish of the day and served with colcannon (Irish-style mashed potato with cabbage, spring onions, bacon and parsley) and a heady lobster bisque. The cob was perfectly cooked and would have been entirely delicious served simply on its wilted spinach bed with colcannon. The addition of the bisque in that quantity over-powered the entire dish.
A third colleague ordered the roast neck of pork (served with mash, braised red cabbage, a mustard sauce and piece of crackling.) She said she enjoyed it.
I ordered the local cheese platter (there is also a pricier French equivalent) and loved the delicious confits and accompanying lavoche crisp bread. The lemon and thyme crème brulee and chocolate and hazelnut tart with honeycomb ice cream and granadilla were both accompanied by ooh’s and aah’s.
The Big Easy, 95 Dorp Street, Stellenbosch is open every day for lunch and dinner. 021-887-3462
[15-Feb-09]
Brian Berkman
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